Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 74122 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74122 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
He couldn’t argue that last point. But there was nothing illegal about his club. The women were treated well, and it was their choice to work there. They weren’t coerced one bit. So she could take her self-righteous morals and shove them up her ass.
He might not be Paul-type rich, but he did well. He could provide for his daughter, give her most of what she needed. Maybe not everything this Paul could, but she didn’t need to be spoiled, she just needed her father. She just needed to know she was loved. And wanted.
Fuck.
“Now get out of here before she comes outside looking for me.”
He glanced toward the house. He’d had no idea that Caitlin was inside all this time. His heart began to pound. “Wanna see her.”
“You have no right to see her.”
“Need to tell ‘er ‘bout me.”
“No, I don’t, Dawg. That’s why there are courts. Good luck with that. I’m sure we can tie things up in the system until you run out of money.” She moved away from him back to her driveway. “If you don’t leave right now, I’m calling the police and then she can see you being arrested and hauled off in handcuffs. Something I’m sure you’re used to.”
His jaw tightened. “Ain’t a jailbird.”
“Oh, well, let me give you a gold star. I’m sure you’re an upstanding citizen with a lot to contribute to society. Go you!” she cheered, then sneered, “Now get out of here. Any further communication can be done through our attorneys.”
With that, she spun on her heel and hurried toward the house.
He fought the temptation to follow her, force his way into the house and see Caitlin. To talk to her. Hear her voice. Discover everything about her that’s been kept from him.
But he didn’t.
Because ending up in jail wouldn’t help him. Wouldn’t help Emma.
She had told him to remain civil.
He was going to remain fucking civil even if it killed him.
“Got a bead on ‘em,” Diesel’s voice grumbled through Dawg’s cell phone three days later.
Dawg blew out a relieved breath and scrubbed a hand over his beard. “Where? Brunei?”
“Yeah,” D grunted. “Looks like they were plannin’ on stayin’ for a while. Rented a place. Bought a car. Changed their names.”
Dawg turned his back toward the stage and stepped away from Cubby, covering his ear with his hand so he could hear the DAMC’s enforcer better over the music. “Your guys there now?”
“Yeah. Hunter. Walker. Mercy headin’ that direction.”
Fuck. With Mercy on his way, shit was about to go down and Lily might be home soon. Dawg needed to get his shit together and get their future in order. Talk to Z. Talk to Emma once he figured out their plans to see if she was on board.
He hoped to hell she was.
“They got Lily yet?”
“Nope. Watchin’. Waitin’. Makin’ sure they don’t bolt somewhere else.”
“She okay?”
“Yeah.”
“Can I tell Emma?”
“Fuck no. Ain’t tellin’ her shit. Once the kid’s back on the ground in PA, we’ll tell ‘er. Not a second before, got me?”
“She worries, D. Wanna tell her Lily’s safe.”
“Just gonna hafta worry for now. Don’t want this fucked six ways to Sunday. Keepin’ it on a need-to-know basis. Gonna do this the way my guys wanna do it. They’re the ones puttin’ their asses on the line.”
“Understood,” Dawg answered. He understood it, but he didn’t like it. Emma needed some reassurance. He turned with his phone still up to his ear and immediately spotted Ember working a customer at the other end of the stage.
He didn’t like keeping shit from her. Not about her own daughter. But he had to do what was best for Lily and for D’s crew. D was right, they were putting their asses on the line. They didn’t have to, but they wanted to since D confessed that they had decided to volunteer their time. D and the DAMC coffers were covering a lot of the travel expenses. Dawg would cover anything else needed.
This was a costly mission in more ways than one. But he wasn’t giving the rat bastard who stole Emma’s daughter more than a second of his thoughts. Not more than one fucking second.
He did Emma wrong. He did Lily wrong by ripping her away from her mother. A mother who loved and cared for her. He deprived both of them a year and a half of their lives together.
He was a selfish prick who needed to pay. However Mercy decided the fucker needed to pay, Dawg was okay with it.
Did that make him a cold-hearted bastard? Probably. But there were consequences to every action. And Emma’s ex was going to find that out.
“You know shit’s gonna change once she’s back with her mother, right?” D’s deep grumble came through the phone.
“For Lily?”
“For you, brother. Woman’s got a seven-year-old. You got a strip club. Gotta make a plan. Ain’t gonna be a fight on her end with the husband. That problem’s bein’ permanently solved. Don’t know jack ‘bout ‘is family. They decide to fight ‘er, she might lose. Some people get jacked ‘bout women dancin’ naked on a stage. Ain’t gonna look good durin’ a custody battle.”